Puzzle.



c. B. BREWER.

PUZZLE APPLICATION FILED. OCT-27. 1914.

m: Nmzms PETERS ca, WASHI'VGYON, 0.

CHARLES B. BREWER, OF HYAT'ISVILLE, MARYLAND.

PUZZLE.

Specification of Letters Patent.

Patented May 11, 1915.

Application filed October 27, 1914. Serial No. 868,875.

To all whom it may concern:

Be it known that I, CHARLES B. BREWER, a citizen of the United States, residing at Hyattsville, in the county of Prince Georges, State of Maryland, have invented new and useful Improvements in Puzzles, of which the following is a specification.

My invention relates to puzzles or amusement devices of the kind in which an inclosed box-like tray contains one or more pellets or balls that are caused to move into a certain desired position by tilting the tray; and its object is to provide a device of that character that shall be inexpensive and of greater interest to work or solve than any others with which I am acquainted.

I have illustrated the invention in the accompanying drawing, which forms part of this specification, it being understood that such drawing is illustrative and not restrictive of the invention to the form therein particularly shown.

Figure 1 is a general plan view of the device. Fig. 2 is a section on line 33 of Fig. 1. Fig. 3 1s a similar view of the carrier. Fig. 4 1s a similar view of the socalled target.

The device consists of a shallow box or tray 8 surrounded by a border or frame 9 and inclosed by a transparent cover 10 of glass, celluloid or the like. Within the box or tray is arranged a partition or septum 11 that divides the interior of the tray into two compartments or areas 8 and 11 The septum may form an inclosure, as shown, having a pellet-admitting opening 12, and one or more pellet-discharge apertures 13, 14. In the area or compartment 11 is a pellet carrier A which is slidable or freely movable over the floor of the tray when the same is tilted. This carrier is in the form.

of a box, slightly shallower than the interior depth of the tray. It is open on the side that is against the floor of the tray, but closed on its upper side. In one of its walls is a pellet-admitting aperture 16, and in the opposite wall is a pellet-discharge aperture 17. The aperture 16 registers with aperture 12 when the carrier is in one position, as shown, but aperture 17 registers with one of the apertures 13 or 14 when the carrier is in a difl'erent position.

In area or compartment 8 is a target T, so-called, consisting preferably of a box similar in construction and arrangement to carrier A, though it may be smaller in area. Like carrier A, the target T is slidable about the tray when the latter is tilted. The target T has in one side a pellet-admitting aperture 18. If desired, both target T and carrier A may be provided with ball bearings 15 to facilitate their sliding about the tray. In the tray are placed a number of pellets or balls 7.

To explain the puzzle thecarrier A may be termed an air-ship and may be given a conventional shape to suggest that craft the pellets 7 may be termed bombs, and the target T may be termed a marine ship and conventionally shaped and colored to carry out that idea. Also the floor of the tray 8 over which the parts slide or move may be decorated to represent sea and sky as appropriate. By suitably tilting the tray the pellet or pellets 7 may be caused to run around to the aperture 12, when, if the carrier A (air-ship) has been moved by appropriate tilting and tapping of the tray so that its aperture 16 registers with aperture 12 the pellet or pellets 7 (bombs) Willrun into and load the carrier A. As in that position the discharge aperture 17 does not register with either of the openings 13 or 14 of the partition 11, the pellets are retained in the carrier. The tray is now tilted carefully until the target T and carrier A are both brought into such positions that the carrier aperture 17, either of apertures 13 or 14, and'target'aperture 18 are all brought in line or registry, whereupon the pellets will drop or run from the carrier A into the target T. The target aperture 18 may be regarded as a vital spot in the ship T. when the target is thus struck and all the pellets are within the target the game may be repeated by tilting the tray to cause the pellets to run out of the target and again caused to be loaded into the carrier as before described.

Various modifications in the form and arrangement of the parts may be made with out departing from the invention.

Having described my invention, I claim:

1. A device of the character described comprising a tray; a septum dividing said tray into two areas, said septum having apertures therein; pellets in said tray adapted to be moved, by tilting the tray, from one of said areas into the other through the septum apertures; and a freely movable pellet-carrier in one of said areas controlling the septum apertures, said pellet-carrier having a pellet-discharge aperture therein.

2. A device of the character described comprising a tray; a septum dividing said tray into two areas and having apertures therein; pellets adapted to be moved, by tilting the tray, from one of said areas into the other through the septum apertures; a freely movable pellet-carrier in one of the areas and controlling the septum apertures; said pellet-carrier having a pellet-discharge aperture therein; and a target in the other area adapted to be struck by a pellet passing through a septum aperture.

3. A device of the character described comprising a tray; a septum dividing said tray into two areas and having apertures therein; pellets adapted to be moved, by tilting the tray, from one of said areas into the other through the septum apertures; a freely movable pellet-carrier in one of the areas and controlling the septum apertures; said pellet-carrier having a pellet-discharge aperture therein; and a similarly movable target in the other area adapted to be struck by a pellet passing through a septum aperture.

4. A device of the character described comprising a tray; a septum dividing said tray into two areas and having apertures therein; pellets adapted to be moved, by tilting the tray, from one of said areas into the other through the septum apertures; a freely movable pellet-carrier in one of the areas, said carrier having a pellet-admission and a pellet-discharge opening, the said discharge opening registering with a septum aperture in one position of the car.- rier; and a target in the other area adapted to be struck by a pellet passing through a septum aperture.

5. A device of the character described comprising a tray; a septum dividing said tray into two areas and having apertures therein; pellets adapted to be moved, by tilting the tray, from one of said areas into the other through the septum apertures; a freely movable pellet-carrier in one of the areas and controlling the septum apertures; and a similarly movable target in the other area, said target being a receptacle having a pellet-admission opening registering with a septum aperture in one position of the target.

6. A device of the character described comprising a tray; a septum dividing said tray into two areas, said septum having apertures therein and passages around its ends to admit pellets; pellets adapted to be moved, by tilting the tray, from one of said areas into the other through the septum apertures and end passages; a freely movable pellet-carrier in one of said areas and controlling the septum apertures; and a similarly movable target in the other area, said target being a receptacle having a pelletadmission opening registering with a septum aperture in one position of the target.

7. A device of the character described comprising a tray; said tray being divided into two compartments or areas, one of said compartments having a pellet-admitting aperture on one side thereof and one ormore pellet-exit apertures on another side thereof; pellets in, said tray adapted to pass through said apertures when the tray is tilted; a movable pellet carrier in said lastnamed compartment, said carrier having on one side thereof a. pellet-admitting opening and on the other side thereof a pellet,discharge opening, said openings adapted to register, respectively, with the admitting and exit openings in the compartment in different positions of the carrier; and a movable target in the other compartment adapted to be moved into registry or line with one or other of the said exit apertures from the first compartment.

In testimonywhereof I afiiX my signature in presence of two witnesses.

CHARLES B. BREWER.

Witnesses:

FRANK A. KANE, JAMEs ATKINs.

Copies of this patent mayv be obtained for five cents each, by addressing. the tqon m i ssioner of Batents,

Washingtoml), G. 

